Dream Team Back Together One Final Time 2/25/19

Boy was that hard. Alisha and I had a great time catching up but being in Tampa was so surreal. It was so wonderful to see Nick but there is a weight and a sadness about him that wasn't there 4 years ago. Becoming the mayor has taken a toll on him. Being pulled by so many people and having his hands tied to actually do anything to help them. His countenance is sad. Us girls look lame in this picture but even Nick's smile is faked. The joy is gone.

Sitting in the restaurant and trying to tell him we were closing down Open Hand was so hard. I started crying, Alisha teared up and she's been the strong one through this whole process. I think sitting face to face with Nick brought it all home. Nick doesn't show emotion so it was hard to really gage what he was feeling/thinking. He said that he can't really be mad at us because we have done so much for him and the people in Pignon. We told him that we still want to be friends with him and know how his life is going. I mentioned how he has been faithful in every aspect of Open Hand and that he IS Open Hand. Without him, nothing would be done. Before our meeting we had decided to pay Nick's salary for the next year as well as we are going to turn over all the money that is in Pignon for him to continue. We figured out if he charges just a little interest then he can potentially make two to three times what we were paying him! What a great testimony!

It was a sad goodbye. It wasn't even bitter sweet. It was just plain sad.